No TV debates for a month: Congress after massive defeat in LS polls

Amid political uncertainty within the party following the severe drubbing it received in the Lok Sabha elections, Congress on Thursday barred its spokespersons from representing the party on news channel debates for a month.

Taking to Twitter, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala requested all media channels and its editors to not place any Congress representatives on their shows.

"@INCIndia has decided to not send spokespersons on television debates for a month. All media channels/editors are requested to not place Congress representatives on their shows," Surjewala tweeted while announcing the party's decision.

This came after Rahul Gandhi, who became the Congress president in 2017, offered to step down from his post at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting on May 25, taking moral responsibility for the party's dismal performance in the recently concluded 17th general elections.

However, his resignation offer was unanimously rejected by the CWC.

So far, several top leaders have met Gandhi and urged him to continue to lead the party.

Sources said that despite senior members making serious attempts to convince the 48-year-old party chief to rethink his decision, he remains unfazed.

These leaders, sources said, maintained that Congress cannot afford to have someone new at the helm for rebuilding the organisation at this juncture and that the responsibility for the defeat is collective and not individual.

The Congress won 52 seats in the recent general elections, which is just eight more than 2014, in the outgoing Lok Sabha.